1. Field of the Invention
The embodiments of the invention generally relate to electrostatic air particulate filtration and, more particularly, to small scale electrostatic air particle filtration systems and devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
Filtering of air particle contaminants is important for areas such as microelectromechanical systems (MEMs), fuel cells, and other electronic devices. However, particulate filters tend to fill up with dirt and generally have to be replaced on a much too frequent basis and may require fans and motors to provide sufficient gas flow through the filter. Furthermore, particle precipitators have been widely used in the industry to gather particulates from gas streams on an industrial level.
However, one of the reasons that particle precipitators are not used on a small scale (for example, micro scale or nano scale) is the relatively high voltage that has to be applied to “charge” the air which then transfers the charge to the air borne particulates. Therefore, there remains a need for a novel air particulate filtration system capable of being used in small scale (for example, micro scale or nano scale) environments including MEMs applications.